With the six of them in the Kodiak, it was still a pretty good fit. As it turns out, Regine also had some pilot training since Cortez was still stuck in bed, and she was on the controls of the shuttle with Tali beside her, talking about Earth and Rannoch.
The four men… Garrus, Javik, Kaidan and himself, sat in the back, with Javik's four eyes closed in meditation. Garrus sat beside James, and the turian shifted to lean back and smile at him.
"Soooo…" Garrus said teasingly, his mandibles flared in a smile, "The Doctor, huh?"
James face turned red and he lightly punched the turian's arm. "Shut up. She'll hear you."
Garrus chuckled, and luckily Regine didn't hear their conversation, as she was busy discussing what seemed to be human psychology with Tali. Kaidan peeked at her, before turning to Garrus and James, "Yeah. Chakwas told me you were interested in her, Vega."
James groaned and rubbed his temple, "Damn, this chismes is spreading like a wildfire."
Garrus laughed, and Kaidan smiled. He just shook his head, "Just drop it, okay? I don't think she's interested."
The turian shrugged, "She blushed when you guys were close to each other. Isn't that a human sign of interest?"
"Yeah, it's also a sign of embarrassment." James said, "Come on, Scars…"
"I'm surprised, Mr. Vega." Kaidan said as he leaned back, "I didn't realize you'd give up so easily. I thought you liked the challenging ones."
James smirked a little, "Yeah well, I got her to blush and smile a little, but that's it. The reina de hielo isn't cracking at all."
"Rei… what?" Garrus asked, and James waved a hand, "Reina de hielo… Queen of Ice. She was really cold at me when we first met."
"You made her laugh once too, Dr. Chakwas told me." Kaidan added, "And that's a big deal, Vega. Chakwas said that Akira hadn't laughed… hadn't smiled… since Christine and April's deaths."
James blinked, "R… really?"
Kaidan nodded, "Hackett sent me her psych profile before she boarded the Normandy. She functions, true, but it was almost like she's not human. She never laughs, hardly smiles, and is distant and cold to her patients, and works all the time. Never took a day of leave, it seems."
"Huh… wow." James said, "I guess she was really torn up about it."
Kaidan nodded, "Exactly. I know I told you to back off, James… but now… I want you to do what you can for Dr. Akira. I think… I think you two would be good together."
James smiled at this, and reached out to shake hands with his commanding officers, "Thanks, Major."
Kaidan nodded, but suddenly an explosion rocked the Kodiak, making the Prothean's eyes open.
"We got a visual!" Regine shouted from the pilot's seat as Tali retrieved her shotgun. "Thirty mercs, spread out. Watch out for the snipers! Coming in hot!"
"BRING IT!" James shouted as all of them raised their weapons.
Regine let the Kodiak down on a grassy knoll with plenty of rock cover in Fehl Prime, and stood up as she activated its barriers. She removed her assault rifle behind her as the doors of the Kodiak opened, and they scrambled for cover.
She raised her assault rifle and shot at the soldiers, as Javik the Prothean charged up his biotics and ran ahead, throwing warps around the soldier surrounding the Comm Tower. James ran ahead as well, taking cover, and shooting at the mercs. Garrus provided them with cover fire with his sniper rifle, and soon they made their way to the tower. Regina palmed open the door, and Tali, Javik and Kaidan entered.
"Keep the door covered. Hold the line!" Kaidan said as the three of them shot. James bent over his cover as a bullet nearly hit the top of his hair.
Garrus bent down to cover beside him, and looked at James as Regine came out from under her rock to shoot. "I need a distraction!" The turian shouted, "I need somebody to draw off their fire so I could get the snipers!"
Regine bent down and nodded to James, who took his turn at shooting. "You need somebody that the snipers will target?" She said and she holstered her gun and brought out her pistol. "You got it!"
"Hey! Wait…. Doctor!" Garrus shouted as Regine came out and her biotics flared around her body, shielding her.
"Regine!" James said as he watched the woman charge at the mercenaries like blue lightning, shooting at them with her pistol and slashing at the ones that got too close with her OmniBlade.
"Find the snipers!" She shouted as she punched a batarian mercenary through the stomach, "Right now, Vakarian!"
"Scoped and dropped!" Garrus shouted in exaltation as the snipers started popping out of their cover.
James shot at the ones coming after Regine, but they kept coming at her. She defended herself pretty well with all her moves, using her OmniBlade like a sword as she punched, kicked, shot and stabbed the ones that got near her.
"Snipers cleared out, Doctor!" Garrus said as he shrank down in his cover again to load a fresh heat sink, "Tali, how is the tower doing?!"
"Online in a few seconds!" Tali said from inside the Communication Tower.
"How's the clean-up duty, Garrus?!" Kaidan said.
"Great! Cleaner than the inside of a quarian's EnviroSuit!" Garrus said and he heard Tali give out a small chuckle, "Although, I've never seen Vega so pale before, you guys better hurry!"
"Very funny, Scars!" James yelled as he shot down another merc, jumping up out of cover to shoot at the mercenaries charging at Regine.
"Comm Tower activated!" Tali cried out, "We're on our way back down, just hold it!"
"We're trying!" Garrus said, "The doctor's charging like a damn krogan!"
"Damn it!" He heard Kaidan say, "We're on our way! Just hang on!"
But suddenly the firing stopped, and a single gunshot sounded. Garrus stood up, only to see that all… ALL the mercs were dead, the last one shot by Regine's pistol. He walked over to James, who had dropped his rifle in shock. He looked down at him, to see the soldier's mouth open in shock as he stared in complete adoration at the doctor. He looked over to Regine, and saw the doctor with her back to them. Her OmniTool out, her pistol on her hand, her armored body splattered with blood, and her blonde hair unbound down her back during the fray.
Garrus watched as Regine lowered her head and turned to them, her face splattered with blood. And then, she smiled, her green eyes bright with triumph and her hair fluttering around her, "Good work, General Vakarian… Lieutenant Vega. Thank you."
Garrus' mandibles flared out wide in a smile. But James… fell to his knees. The turian blinked as he bent down at his friend, "You okay, Vega?"
James lowered and shook his head, and then Garrus realized he had a bullet hole on his stomach. Regine realized it too, and she quickly ran to James. "James!" She exclaimed, and she put her hand on his face.
Her touch woke him from his pain, and he looked up at her. His vision swam a little from the blood loss, but her face… her face was genuinely worried. Her brows were turned up, and her open mouth was gasping in fatigue and in shock at seeing James wounded. He smiled a little, and lifted a hand to touch her cheek, and her eyes widened in surprise. His heart twisted at her beauty again.
Damn… I think I love her… he thought, before the darkness took him.
Chismes - rumors
